Collection: Kösho Kichi Yōmon(Kaochang Figured Brocade with Sheep and Character)

Most noted of the excavation works carried out in China in recent years is the one at Astana by the Museum of the Sinkiang-Ur-gur Autonomous Region. The project started in October 1959 has unearthed a variety of dyed textiles. Astana lies 40 km southeast by east to Turfan, extreme east of Tarim Basin in the Region, being not far from Kara Khoja to the northeast and close to the ruined castle of Kaochang to the southeast. In ancient times, it held a key position for the traffic between East and West on the so-called "Silk Road". This brocade is a combination of two different patterns, one with sheep facing each other, and the other a Chinese character for good luck, both picked up from an abundance of rare silk textiles excavated in 1972. It is an excellent example of the prosperity enjoyed by the Kaochang Kingdom (early 6th-lst half 7th century) at the time.